Fragments
by Tifa-Carbuncle
Summary: KOTOR. Aria Kirith, a freelance scout, is suddenly asked to join a mission aboard the Endar Spire. When the ship runs afoul of the Sith Armada above Taris, she is swept up in a destiny she never knew she had.
1. Default Chapter

Fragments

A/N: What an auspicious project...to try and novelize one of the best RPG's in history. But after reading a few others here and there, I decided that I, too, wanted to tell my slight angle on the story. I realize that this is a huge undertaking, and yet, I just can't get the ideas out of my head. So here we go. This is my version of KOTOR. I don't intend to do alot of quoting from ingame, but I will paraphrase. Standard disclaimers apply: I don't own anything, except the character of Aria Kirith. The rest belongs to Lucas/Bioware. They also own the blame for my unhealthy obsession.

Reviews are encouraged, but flames will only be used to roast some nice marshmellows.

Chapter One  
Hazy Borders

Claxons blared out an incessant warning to those still able to hear, their volume muting the explosions that rocked the ship with each successful hit. The ship made a sudden lurch, a sickening groan of metal resounding throughout the hull. With a start the young woman on the bunk awakened, her eyes wide as she glanced around her quarters in assessment of her situation.

"Good, you're awake!" a deep voice called.  
Turning her head in a motion that mimiced that of a predatory bird she noticed the speaker was an older man with graying hair, but if his build spoke for anything, none of his strength was lost. She narrowed her eyes, scanning her memory for a name to put with the face and failing.

"And you are?"

"Trask. I'm your bunk mate, but since we work opposite shifts, we don't see alot of each other. But there's no time for introductions. We're under attack!" He gestured vaguely overhead, "Sith battle cruisers have closed in on us."

She winced as another sickening groan echoed through the ship, then smiled wryly, "So I noticed. Name's Aria. So what exactly is the plan here?"

"Well, first, you'd probably do best with getting suited up. There are Sith onboard as well, swarming everywhere like pirahna beetles."

With a rush of embarassment Aria realized she was still in her rather revealing sleeping attire. She turned from him quickly, the motion serving to hide the flush rising to her cheeks, and began rummaging through her footlocker. Within minutes she was fully dressed, vibroblade in one hand and a blaster on her hip.

"Okay, first we need to find Bastila. Her survival is priority one." Trask turned to the door of the chambers and began working with the controls, his motions assured.

"Bastila?" Aria asked, standing nearby and giving her vibroblade a final inspection.

Trask turned back to her as the door slid open, "Yeah, she's the Jedi in command of this mission. Her Battle Meditation is the key to our whole effort. We're under orders to assure her survival in event of an attack."

An almost feral grin crossed Aria's face as a Sith rounded the corner and began firing on them, "Then let's go assure her survival." With a cry she launched herself at the Sith, carving deadly patterns in the air as she ran. Seeing her mad onslaught the Sith switched to his own vibroblade, parrying her first blow with enough force to send a jolt up her arm. When the soldier suddenly dropped from a blaster bolt in the chest, she turned back to see Trask standing behind her, a smug grin on his face. Arching an eyebrow at him, Aria flashed him a grin in return and bent down to snatch up the Sith's blade before hurrying down the hall again. As they neared the next door, Aria began to make out the faint noises of what sounded like a lightsaber duel. When the door slid open it confirmed her suspicions. A Jedi and a Dark Jedi were locked in combat, neither seeming to gain the upper hand. The Dark Jedi made a fatal mistake, however, lowering his blade to block a low-aimed blow, when the Jedi suddenly reversed her strike and plunged the blade into the Dark Jedi's now-undefended chest. There was precious little time for celebration, though. A blast from the attacking Sith ship struck at that instant, setting off an explosion behind the young Jedi that instantly killed her. Trask swore under his breath as she fell, but wasted no time in getting back to their own escape. As they made their way deeper into the ship, the Sith attacked at seemingly patterned intervals, but they each fell in less than a minute under the combined onslaught of Aria's blade and Trask's deadly aim.

"What's that sound?" Aria murmrued, searching for the source of the quiet electronic beeping that was slowly beginning to grate on her nerves. Glancing at her wrist she was granted with a flash of insight and had to resist the urge to curse her own stupidity. She lifted the communicator to her face and pressed a button, "Yeah?" she asked, unsure of who would be trying to reach her in this chaos. As far as she knew, she and Trask could very well be the only Republic fighters left alive. The communicator pulled up the slightly blurred image of a man standing in what appeared to be the escape pod chamber.

"This is Carth Onasi. I've been tracking both of you through the life-support. You're the last of the crew. This ship won't hold out much longer, you have to get to the escape pods."

The communication cut off abruptly, and Aria heard Trask let out a low whistle, "Carth's one of the best soldiers the Republic has. He's seen more combat than almost everyone on this ship, and if he says it's bad...then it's bad. We need to hurry. I guess Bastila has already left the ship, which means there's no reason for us to hang around anymore. Let's go."

With a curt nod Aria followed after as Trask led the way toward the bridge. They had no more opened the door when they were greeted with a salvo of blaster fire. Taking refuge behind the frame of the door, they met each other's gaze, a silent three-count passing between them. When Aria nodded they lept from behind the frame, Aria twirling her blades as she rushed at the group of Sith soldiers while Trask stayed back, firing into the fray. With a deft swing of her blade Aria decapitated the first Sith she came into range of while turning her other blade to ward off an incoming swipe from another. The first was still falling when she turned full on, unleashing a flurry of quick attacks against the second, who just barely managed to deflect them all.

"Ready to die, bitch?" the Sith growled.

Aria crossed her blades across her chest, flashing him a defiant grin, "After you," she shot back, thrusting both blades out in a motion so fast he had no time to react as they sank into his chest, "...I insist." Kicking the dead body of the Sith from her blades, she turned back to Trask to see him looking her over appraisingly.

"You're good with those." he gestured at the vibroblades, "That last attack was something else."  
The deck shuddered as another loud, metallic groan echoed throughout the ship, cutting the lighthearted moment short. Wordlessly they resumed their flight toward the escape pods, but as

Trask reached out to key open the door leading out of the bridge, Aria felt a tingle of danger, the sense making the hairs on her arms stand.

"Trask-" She started to warn him, but he had already opened the door, revealing the Dark Jedi that stood behind it. With a flourish of his blood-red double-bladed saber, the Dark Jedi motioned for them to step forward. Aria felt her heartbeat quicken, felt the adrenaline begin to kick in, narrowing her mind to only one thought: survival. She tightened her grip on the vibroblades and took a step toward the Jedi before Trask put a hand on her shoulder.

"No. I can hold him, you get to the escape pods!"

Aria's head whipped around, her eyes wide. There was no way he could fight that Dark Jedi alone, and he knew it. She opened her mouth to protest, but he pushed her backward and ran into the room with the Jedi, the door closing fast behind him. A growl of frustration and despair tore itself from her throat as she kicked blindly at the door.

"Dammit, Trask..." she muttered to noone. "That was stupid...why did you...?" Heaving a sigh, Aria turned from the door and keyed open the door on her left, blinking away the tears that had pooled in her eyes. The hallway appeared mercifully abandoned, with only a few scattered bodies lying about. She could only hope the myriad explosions had finished what was left of the Sith in her path. She only barely caught the beeping of her communicator as it went off again; the increasing volume of fire raining down on the Endar Spire was drowning out most other noise. Feeling hope surge in her heart she keyed it on, expecting to see Trask somehow miraculously spared from death. The hope was instantly quashed, however, as the face of the soldier from before appeared again.

"Yes?" she asked, trying to push the disappointment from her voice.

"I just lost one of your signals. Since it's you answering, I'm assuming something happened to Trask."

Aria nodded slightly, fighting to keep control of her voice as she answered him, "There was a Dark Jedi. He said he could hold him while I made a run for the escape pods."

The image of the man seemed thoughtful, "I see. Regardless, you have to get here soon. The Spire isn't going to hold out much longer."

"I'll be there." she replied, her voice once again under control.

"There's quite a few Sith ahead. If I were you, I'd try to use the computers to hack into the security grids and thin them out a bit." he warned.

"I'll do that. See you soon." she cut the communication and bolted down the corridor, following the small map of the ship that was on her personal information system. Ahead were two rooms, and beyond the escape pods. Quickening her pace, Aria burst headlong into the first room, expecting to see half a dozen Sith, but there were only two, and they were quickly dispatched. In the corner she found the computer terminal Carth had mentioned, and she set to work on it.

Tucking a strand of her ebony hair behind an ear, she pulled a computer spike from her waist pack and plugged it into the port. Within seconds she had sliced her way into the security mainframe and was searching for the camera controls to the next room. Locating them, she patched herself into the camera, and gasped at what she saw. Six armed Sith soldiers stood between her and the escape pods, and in such close quarters, she couldn't have much hope of fighting them alone. She tapped her fingers idly on the console as she considered her options, the answer revealing itself to her as her gaze fell on the electrical terminal in the next room. Keying in a few quick commands, she set the terminal to overload, and watched in grim satisfaction as the ensuing electrical explosion sapped the life from the Sith.

Aria took a moment to wipe her vibroblades clean on a scrap of cloth she'd found lying nearby, attaching them to her belt as she keyed open the door to the once-occupied room. She was instantly assaulted by the pungent scent of charred flesh and hair, and had to fight to keep from gagging.

"May you rot in all nine Corellian hells..." she muttered to them as she picked her way across their still twitching bodies to the final door that stood between herself and salvation. Carth looked up as she walked in, his hand straying to his blaster by reflex, then recognition flickered across his face and he let his hand fall as he returned his attention to the computer terminal.

"Okay, we're ready to go now. Let's get the hell out of here." He motioned her over to the final escape pod, indicating that she enter first.

Aria wasted no time in entering the pod, taking the seat next to the only viewport in the craft, and immediately began pulling her crash webbing around herself, buckling it and double-checking it for security before she nodded to Carth. He nodded in return but said nothing, his gaze decidedly far away as he strapped himself into his seat. A dull clunk announced the release of the magnetic clamps that held the pod, and the small drive kicked in an instant later, the sudden acceleration pressing them both back into their seats. Aria gazed out the viewport as the pod made its spinning descent toward the planet below, unable to assess much of the battle overhead. The quick rotation of the pod allowed her only split-second glimpses of the Endar Spire and the massive Sith cruiser that hovered overhead. Lasers continued to lance out from the Sith ship, pounding on the now- derelict Endar Spire, tearing massive holes in the hull as the shields at last gave out. A well-placed shot to the sublight engines sent the entire cruiser nova in a silent explosion.

"The Spire's gone..." Aria announced, mostly to herself.

"She held together long enough for us to escape. She served her duty well." Carth replied, his voice low.

Aria opened her mouth to speak, but stopped short as the pod was enveloped in the heated plasma of re-entry. The temperature inside the pod itself began to rise slightly as they tore through the atmosphere, and suddenly Aria remembered just what planet they were over. "Taris. Isn't it a planet-wide city? If this thing hits in one of the populated sectors, it could do alot of damage."

Carth nodded, "It could. But there isn't much we can do about it, except hope that no one is in the way when it lands. I'm sure everyone will be looking out by now. There's no way the battle went unnoticed."

Aria didn't look entirely convinced, but she supposed he was right. As they finally emerged into the lower altitudes the pod's eccentric spin stabilized, and she was able to make out the towering forms of Taris's skyscrapers as they blazed past. They reached to the very heavens, a silent testament to the wealth of the inhabitants of the planet. For years Taris had been a hub of trade, and had only recently been pushed into more obscure status as new hyperspace routes were discovered.

"Do you think the Si-" Aria's voice cut off suddenly as she was swallowed by darkness.

A bone-jarring jolt tore through the escape pod as it slammed at full speed into the duracrete walkway of Upper Taris. Carth shook his head violently in an attempt to clear the darkening edges from his vision, the motion only serving to intensify the acute headache the crash-landing had graced him with. Thankfully that was the only damage he had sustained, and he quickly freed himself from the crash webbing, knowing that they had all of a minute before the Sith ground patrols began swarming over the pod. He turned to the woman to tell her to hurry, when he noticed why she hadn't said a word since their landing. She sat slumped in her seat, deep crimson blood oozing down her face from a wound that was hidden beneath her ebony hair. The entire left side of her face was a darkening bruise, and an already noticible lump was forming on her temple. The impact of the landing had jostled them both, but apparently she had recieved the worst of it. The force of the impact had thrown her against the side of her seat's niche in the wall, her head slamming against the unpadded metal that made up the hull of the pod.

Muttering a curse, Carth carefully pulled her from her crash webbing and lifted her in his arms. Kicking the door to the pod open, he was greeted by a deserted street; as of yet, the Sith still hadn't found them. By some miracle of Fate they had landed on the night-side of the planet, and the citizens either weren't aware that a pod had landed in their laps, or weren't brave enough to check it out. The same couldn't be said for the Sith, however, as he picked up the faint sounds of booted feet and shouted commands off in the distance. Keeping low and hugging the shadows, he made a run for a nearby walkway, and thanked whatever power was watching over them as he discovered that it led to a group of apartments.

"Hey, who are you? We don't want any trouble here, you hear?" a cracked, aged voice called out from nearby.

Carth whirled to face the speaker, a balding elderly man, "Listen, I need a place to stay. Are there any apartments that are unoccupied?" He was suddenly acutely aware of just how odd he must appear carrying a wounded woman in his arms and skulking about like a common thief. He could only hope the man wouldn't jump to any of the wrong conclusions.

The older man looked him over carefully, "You're from the Republic aren't you?"

Carth tensed, expecting the man to sound the alarm and bring the entire Sith garrison down on them, "Is there a place to stay or not?" he demanded.

The older man chuckled, motioning for him to follow, "Relax, son. I'm a friend of the Republic. I thought I heard something crash not too long ago. Guess that was you two."

"Our pod landed just outside here, but she..." Carth's voice trailed off.

"Mm." The old man nodded, "She does look bad." He stopped in front of a door and keyed the lock, "Here ya go. You can stay here, and I'll do what I can to throw the Sith off your trail. There's kolto patches and medpacs in the medicine cabinet."

"Thanks." Carth replied, slipping inside. The elderly man closed the door behind them, sealing him in the near darkness of the apartment. Detecting motion, the sensors switched on the lights, revealing a rather spacious apartment with four beds set in pairs on opposite walls. He lay the woman on one of the beds, then turned to find the medical supplies the old man had mentioned. He returned to her side with an armful of them, as well as a towel to clean away the congealing blood. He'd been in enough combat to know field medicine, and set to cleaning the deep gash in her scalp with the confidence brought on by those years of experience. A grimace of pain flickered across her face as he injected a medpac into the flesh near the wound, and just as quickly faded away as her mind slipped back into unconciousness. Within seconds the fluids began to work, slowing the flow of blood from the wound significantly.

"Don't you die on me." he whispered to her, carefully pressing a kolto patch to the wound and securing it with a strip of gauze that he wound around her temple.

His hands were covered in her drying blood, an inadvertant reminder of a past he had been trying his best to keep far from his mind. He couldn't afford distraction now, not with them being stranded on an occupied world with no obvious way off, and the shadow of death hanging over the woman. Shaking the thoughts away, he stepped into the refresher to wash the blood off. As he stepped out again he dialed down the control on the lighting to allow the woman to rest better. She lay silent, her breathing much more relaxed than it had been earlier. He prayed that was a sign that she was recovering. Even with the wound healed, there was still no guarantee that she would awaken. If that blow to her head had caused any brain swelling, there would be no way for him to know, and precious little he could do to reverse it. He couldn't trust the hospitals to heal her without giving away their identities to the Sith. Heaving an exhausted sigh he slumped against the wall near her bed, running a hand through his brown hair. He studied her face as she slept, thinking back to the crew roster he'd been shown at the beginning of the mission and attempting to put a name with her face, or at the least her history in the Republic military. Recognition dawned on him as he remembered the last minute addition Bastila and the Jedi had made to the roster. Supposedly she was quite the talented scout, versed in more alien languages than anyone he had ever heard of. The oddity about it was though, that she wasn't a Jedi, or even Force-sensitive according to the records. Why would the Jedi call for a scout who had up to that point been free-lance?

_Something's not right about this... _

Fin Chapter 1


	2. Accusations

AN: Thanks to my reviewers for being so helpful with suggestions and encouragement!

**Tainted-Dreamz: **It's so good to see you around again! Thanks so much for the compliments! Looking forward to the end of your X-2 fic!

**LV: **I'll most definitely take your advice to heart. I'm working on tweaking my own unique flare for the story, and I think I can give mine a bit of individuality. At least, that's what I hope. And Aria is naturally going to have flaws. I, too, am rather annoyed with the KOTOR fics that portray their Revan as this shining, untarnishable paragon of Light. Or a demi-god-like Dark Sider.

**Prisoner 24601:** As per your suggestion, the song lyrics are no more! Thanks for the review and the constructive criticism. I could always use it!

**K-rock:** I'm glad you liked my little 'elaborations'!

And now, je te presente Chapitre Deux. (It's been over a year since I was in French, don't hold me to that being grammatically correct.)  
  
Chapter Two  
Accusations  
  
The dreams came and went like wraiths in a mist, forms she could only glance at out of the corner of her eye, for the minute she met them head-on, they faded into oblivion. Each was stranger than the last, so veiled in a haze that she could never clearly see who was in them, or where she was. At times she heard voices calling to her that she didn't recognize, saw places through the mist that she knew she had never seen before. The last however, didn't seem to involve her at all. A young Jedi stood on the bridge of a ship, her lightsaber glowing a deep yellow. From behind her others emerged, closing in on a hooded, masked form that met them without flinching, drawing a blood-red saber of its own. It spun the blade in expert patterns as if taunting the young Jedi who stood before it.  
  
The young woman did not seem impressed, though, and took another step forward, "You cannot win, Revan." she stated, her voice low and as calm as a student reciting their lesson.  
The dream chose that moment to leave her, however, and she snapped at last back into reality. A clammy sweat had broken out across her skin, the moisture chilling her as it came into contact with the air conditioning of the room she lay in.  
  
"You're awake." a vaguely familiar voice called from nearby.  
  
Her memories returned to her full-force, bringing with them a sting of pain as she remembered Trask's sacrifice. She pushed herself into a sitting position, the sudden movement sending her spiraling back toward the embrace of darkness as spots began to swim in her vision. A hand came to rest on her shoulder, drawing her gaze to the man who stood at her bedside. He seemed familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place him. His short chestnut hair was disheveled, and two strands hung almost stubbornly above his right eye.  
There were dark shadows under his deep brown eyes, betraying the fact that he had slept little, if any, in the time she had been out. He seemed to notice the confused look in her eyes and smiled softly.  
  
"I'm Carth, remember? I was in the escape pod with you."  
  
Aria nodded, sliding from the bed and shakily rising to her feet, "Yeah. I'm Aria Kirith, by the way. I guess I owe you my life. Thanks."  
  
"There's no need to thank me. I haven't left anyone behind on a mission yet, and I'm not about to start. For a while there I was beginning to think you weren't going to wake up. You kept thrashing around and muttering, must have been one hell of a nightmare."  
  
Aria sighed, pushing a strand of ebony hair that had come loose from its tie behind her ear,  
  
"Yeah, it was...pretty intense. I take it you weren't hurt when we landed?"  
  
He shook his head, "Aside from a headache that lasted the better part of two days, no. It's a good thing, too. If we had both been out, you would have awakened in a Sith torture chamber. But since we're just soldiers, I doubt they'll put much effort into tracking us down now. They're looking for something else, I'm guessing Bastila."  
  
Aria smiled weakly, "We've slipped under the radar, there's one thing going our way. So where is Bastila? Any idea where her pod hit?"  
  
"Not really. I did a little scouting yesterday, but I couldn't find any real information."  
  
Aria frowned in deep thought, "There's too many Sith around for the citizens to talk freely. We might have to seek out some of the...less respectable inhabitants for information."  
  
Carth sighed, "I'd expected as much. We need to keep a low profile anyway, and if we go asking the elite of Taris about downed pods, people will start noticing."  
  
"Well," Aria tilted her head, "I'm sure this place is similar to Coruscant, meaning the best place to go for information would be down to the lower levels. So let's get going. The longer we stand around, the more time the Sith have to find Bastila."  
  
"Right." Carth agreed, turning from her for a moment and reaching for a nearby table. When he turned back, he was holding twin vibroblades out to her, "Your weapons."  
  
Aria nodded her thanks as she ran a critical eye over the blades; assured that they were still in pristine condition should she need them, she led the way out of the apartment. They had gone no more than two steps when trouble greeted them. Two green, humanoid aliens were standing at the blasterpoint of two Sith troopers and their commander.  
  
"What the hell is going on?" Carth murmured to her, eyeing the situation warily.  
  
Aria shook her head, "Doesn't look good."  
  
"This is an inspection! All of you, up against the walls!" The commander's voice had the haughty tone of a man who had been accustomed to getting his way and stepping all over others since birth.  
  
"But there was an inspection just last week!" one of the aliens protested.  
  
Without warning the commander fired his blaster, catching the alien in the chest with a single shot. The remaining alien began to tremble in fear, certain his death would follow fast on the heels of his friend's.  
  
"Hey!" Aria called, unwilling to stand silent, "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" She drew her vibroblades, twirling them idly in her hands, a cocky smile forming on her lips, "Like me."  
  
The commander turned, his face a rictus of indignation, "Humans? Hiding here with the aliens? You're the Republic fugitives! Men, attack!"  
  
Aria almost laughed aloud at their predictable response. She ducked and rolled under the first shots fired in their direction, coming to her feet again within striking distance of the first soldier. He jumped back as she took the first swing, reaching for his own vibroblade. Behind her she heard Carth begin firing on the soldiers, but she couldn't spare the time to check on his status. She was locked in a deadly dance with the first soldier still, her twin blades battering furiously on his single blade. With a slight turn of the wrist he knocked one of her blades away, sending it skittering across the floor, following up with a quick slash that penetrated her defenses and left a deep gash across her shoulder. Hissing in pain Aria made a run for her fallen weapon, scooping it up just in time to parry another blow. She heard Carth calling out to her, but she ignored it. Loss of concentration could prove to be deadly. Lashing out with one leg she planted a sound kick to the soldier's gut, doubling him over. She finished him with a quick thrust to the chest and let his body fall at her feet.  
  
Immediately she prepared for the second soldier to jump her, but both he and the commander lay dead behind her, smoking blaster wounds in their chests. Letting a tired sigh escape her lips she wiped her blades on the commander's uniform, then glanced back at Carth, noted that he was unhurt and turned her attention to the alien.  
  
"Are you injured?" she inquired.  
  
The alien shook his head, "No. I must thank you, human. You saved my life."  
  
Aria smiled at him, "Don't mention it. I'm just sorry I couldn't save him," She let her gaze fall to the lifeless body of the other alien, "I'm sorry."  
  
"It isn't your fault human. These things often happen. He will be missed. But for now, accept my thanks. I will do away with the bodies. Hopefully that will put the Sith off your trail."  
  
Aria nodded her thanks, then turned and made her way back to where Carth stood. His gaze immediately fell on the oozing wound in her shoulder, concern flickering across his features.  
  
"You're wounded."  
  
Aria grinned wryly, "I noticed. It's just a scratch, anyway. We need to get going."  
  
Carth tossed her one of the medpaks he'd taken from the apartment, "Scratch or not, you bleeding will attract attention."  
  
"Yes, father..." Aria muttered, wincing as she injected the healing fluid into her shoulder. Within a few seconds the anesthetics numbed the pain, while the kolto sped the closing of the wound. She rolled her shoulder experimentally, testing the effects of the medicine,  
  
"Alright, I'm all patched up. Let's get moving." As she came to the next door in the hall, she suddenly stopped, glancing back at Carth with a thoughtful look, "You know, I just realized if this group of apartments is mainly inhabited by aliens and some of the lower class, we could start asking questions here."

Carth nodded his agreement, "Sounds logical."  
  
Aria rang the buzzer next to the door, waiting patiently for the inhabitants to answer. The door slid open, revealing a rather scared looking woman. She looked Aria and Carth over warily, her eyes darting around as if she expected to be jumped at any moment. The look on her face immediately dissolved Aria's questions about Bastila, and replaced them with concern for the woman.  
  
"Yes? What do you want?" the woman asked, her voice shaky.  
  
"Is...something wrong?" Aria asked.  
  
The woman's eyes narrowed in suspicion, "Why do you ask? Even if there is, you can't help."  
  
Aria smiled sympathetically, "Maybe I can. Is it the Sith?"  
The woman shook her head, "Worse. Bounty hunters. Look, I really shouldn't be telling you about this."  
  
"Bounty hunters?" Aria glanced back at Carth. He shrugged slightly, giving her an equally confused look.  
  
"Holdan, one of Davik's men. I was in the cantina one night, and he was getting a little fresh. I kept telling him no, but he wouldn't listen, and when he tried to force the issue, I cut him with my vibroknife. The next day, I had a bounty on my head." The woman withdrew a step, her almost paranoid glances down the hall returning.  
  
"All because you defended yourself?" Carth asked incredulously.  
  
Aria snorted, "Doesn't surprise me. Scum like that can't fight their own battles. Don't worry, we'll get that bounty removed, count on it."  
  
The woman bowed slightly, the tension visibly draining from her face, "Thank you...I'd...I'd better get back inside now."  
  
Aria shook her head in disbelief as she continued down the corridor, "I've only been awake for twenty minutes and I'm already beginning to hate this planet. Between the Sith and the bounty hunters, this place is going to get interesting very fast."  
  
A quick sweep of the few remaining apartments revealed no information, only frightened inhabitants cowering under the mere thought of the Sith. As they stepped out into the bright light of Taris's noon, Aria sighed heavily.  
  
"That was an utter waste of time. The Sith have everyone terrified of even thinking in the wrong direction."  
  
"Well, there's a good reason for that. They have this annoying tendency to want everyone dead." Carth quipped. Despite the light tone in his voice, Aria noticed the brief flicker in his eyes, the hint of sadness that had surfaced.  
  
_Did the Sith...? _  
  
"Carth, is something wrong?"  
  
The barriers around him slammed back into existence with the speed of lightning, and once again he was the all-business soldier. He shook his head, "No, why?"  
  
Aria decided to let it drop, she hadn't known him long enough to justify prying into his past, and she wasn't too keen on alienating perhaps the only person she could rely on while on Taris, "Nevermind. I'd like to know more about you, though."  
  
He gave her a quizzical look, then smiled, deciding to placate her curiosity, "I guess that's understandable. I've been a soldier with the Republic Fleet for years, and I've fought in more wars than I care to remember. My homeworld was Telos...until the Sith destroyed it. Until I failed them..."  
  
Aria tilted her head, "Failed them?"  
  
Carth flinched as if she'd struck him, "Look, it's nothing personal, I just don't like talking about my past with anyone. Can we just get back to looking for Bastila now?"  
  
"Yeah. Of course." She murmured, turning from him to glance around the city. Her mind wandered as she contemplated where to go next, her thoughts occupied with Carth's rather abrupt ending of their conversation.  
  
_Failed them? There's more to this, a lot more. How can one soldier possibly hold himself responsible for the destruction of an entire planet? One man couldn't have stopped that alone. Hell, the entire Republic Fleet in that sector hadn't been able to do much. _  
  
"Aria."  
  
The sound of her name being called snapped her from her thoughts, and turned her wandering gaze back to Carth, "Yeah?"  
  
A slightly amused smirk was playing across his lips, "You're gawking like a tourist. Are we going to get moving or not?"  
  
Aria nodded, shaking off the remaining threads of worry that were clouding her mind as she smiled back at him before speaking, "I think we should start at the clinic. If Bastila's been injured, maybe someone found her before the Sith and took her there. If not, then perhaps some of the other soldiers have made their way there. Either way, it could be our best chance."  
  
He ran a hand through his hair, somehow managing to smooth out the slightly tousled look he'd had since she'd awakened in the apartment, "Makes sense, but somehow I get the feeling that this isn't going to be as simple as that."  
  
Aria heaved a sigh as she began to make her way toward the clinic, "Yeah, I've got the same feeling."  
  
As soon as they entered the clinic Aria detected a hint of the harsh antiseptic scent of kolto, though there were no kolto tanks in sight. A man stood near the door, but she couldn't tell if he was an assistant, or a patient of some sort. Near a computer terminal a top-of-the-line medical droid stood, watching them as they entered.  
  
"Can I help you?" a masculine voice called from the back.  
  
Aria locked her blue-gray eyes onto the speaker. He was an older man, perhaps in his late fifties with dark skin and graying hair.  
  
"I need to ask if someone has come by your clinic in the past few hours." she replied, closing the distance between them.  
  
Immediately the man's eyes narrowed, suspicion becoming clear on his face, "Who would that be?"  
  
"A woman by the name of Bastila."  
  
"Bastila?" the doctor's voice rose slightly, betraying his surprise, "Those Rep-" He cut himself off suddenly, but by the look in his eyes, he realized it was too late. A guise of fear swept over his features, draining the blood from his face.  
  
"Republic?" Carth's voice interjected.  
Aria glanced over her shoulder; he stood just behind her, his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
"I…" the doctor stammered, beginning to panic.  
  
"Relax." Aria soothed, flashing him a friendly smile as she lowered her voice, "We're from the Republic."  
  
"Aria!"  
  
She glanced over her shoulder again, meeting Carth's eyes, "It's okay. Trust me."  
Aria had turned back to the doctor before she could see the flicker in Carth's eyes, and continued asking questions. She quickly discovered that as she had feared, he hadn't seen Bastila, nor had any of the Republic soldiers that had been brought in by concerned citizens. While the men knew of her and had mentioned her in passing to the doctor, he didn't have a clear idea of who she was, or where she could be.  
  
"If anyone would have any information, they would be in the Lower City. The swoop gangs down there keep tabs on everything that happens on this planet, Upper City or Lower City. Of course if she ended up in the Undercity, you could be in for a rough time. The Sith won't let anyone through save their own patrols, and the rakghouls…"  
  
Aria lifted a brow, "Rakghouls? What are those?"  
  
The doctor shuddered visibly, his face twisting into a mask of disgust, "They were human once. Once a person is bitten by a rakghoul, the poison enters their bloodstream and slowly turns them into a mindless, murdering beast. I've heard the Republic scientists had developed a type of serum, but the Sith took over the lab, and I haven't been able to get my hands on one to synthesize some of my own. There are Sith patrols that go down into the Undercity, they probably carry vials with them. They'd be fools not to. But if I had that serum…so many lives could be saved."  
  
"The Sith, huh?" An idea began to formulate itself, "We'll get that serum for you."  
  
"Don't say that! If the Sith were to hear, they'd arrest me for sure!"  
  
"It'll be fine. But I will be back with that serum." She assured him, "Thanks for your time, but we need to get going."  
  
He nodded, "It's no trouble. I'm just sorry I wasn't of more help. May the Force be with you both."  
  
"Hey, lady." A voice hissed as she neared the door of the clinic.  
  
Aria paused, glancing dubiously at the man who'd been there since they had arrived, "Yes?"  
  
"I heard you talking to the doctor about that serum. Davik's been looking for that stuff for a long time. If you find any, take it to-"  
  
"Just what is this 'Davik' planning to do with the serum?" Aria interrupted, already wary of the man's intentions, and uncomfortable with how much he'd overheard. _With our luck, he's some mercenary who'll sell us out to the Sith. Dammit…_  
  
"Sell it of course! I'm sure he'd give you a cut of the profits." the man exclaimed, giving her a curious look.  
  
"I see. So the rich will benefit and the poor will keep suffering." Carth interjected, his voice dripping with contempt.  
  
The man spread his hands, "Hey…it's business."  
  
"I think I'll pass." Aria replied curtly as she brushed past him and out the door. She walked over to the far edge of the causeway, staring out over the cityscape as she considered their options. Carth's footsteps came to a halt at her side, drawing her gaze over to him. He'd been strangely quiet for some time, seemingly content to let her take the lead in their mission, though he was the one with the rank. It was almost as if he were watching her, gauging her actions. And for some reason she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being tested in some way.  
  
"Is this a good time to ask more questions?" she inquired, keeping her gaze locked on the distant skyline.  
  
Carth shifted uneasily, glancing sidelong at her, "Is it really necessary?"  
  
She heaved an exasperated sigh and turned to him, "Not if you have a problem with it."  
  
"Oh, no. Not at all. Go ahead, interrogate away." he replied sarcastically.

Aria narrowed her eyes in agitation at him before turning back to the skyline, "I never said I was interrogating you. I just wanted to know you better, but screw it. Let's just go."  
  
She started to push past him when he reached out and halted her with a hand on her shoulder, "Wait, Aria. I want to ask you something."  
  
She fixed him with a cold glance, "What?"  
  
"Tell me what happened on the Spire from your perspective. I've been trying to make sense of it and some things still don't fit for me. It was such a sudden attack, almost as if they knew we were coming. If we'd had some time, a warning, Bastila could have used her Battle Meditation, but…I don't know…something's just not right."  
  
"Well, I wasn't in a position to know much of anything. I woke up with klaxons screaming in my ears and turbolasers pounding at my door. Trask explained some of the situation to me, but like you said, I guess it was just that they caught us completely off-guard." Aria's gaze slowly changed to a more quizzical nature, "Why?"  
  
"It just seems strange to me that a last-minute addition to the crew would be one of the survivors." he stated, his voice flat.  
  
Aria felt her mouth drop open in shock as the meaning behind his words sank in. Her eyes flared with anger and indignation, and she planted a hand on her hip, "You think I had something to do with it, don't you, Onasi? Well, you know what? I didn't."  
  
Carth didn't appear intimidated in the least as he replied, "Bastila and her party specifically requested you to be added just before we left. And then you just happen to survive. It's all just a little too convenient."  
  
"Convenient? _Convenient_!?" she hissed, trying to keep from drawing too much attention to herself and Carth, "Listen, you hairless wookiee, you can just go to _hell_. I don't know why Bastila and the Jedi would request me, but I do know that I didn't have a damn thing to do with the attack on the Spire. And I really don't give a damn if you believe me or not, but it's the truth. So you can just space your reasons and your paranoia."  
  
"Maybe you're right…" he conceded, "And this may all be nothing. But that doesn't mean I'm going to stop watching you and being wary. I'm just not built that way."  
  
Aria shook her head in disbelief, "Fine. Watch away, flyboy." With that she turned abruptly and continued down the street without bothering to look back to see if he were following.  
  
Carth frowned as he fell in behind her, feeling a faint sting of guilt. _And what if she really is telling the truth? It's strange, though, that she doesn't know anything about how the Jedi requested her specifically. Seems something like that would have been mentioned to her at some point, or the Jedi would have at least met with her._ He shook his head, _The further into this I get, the more it seems like there's something just beneath the surface that I can't see. Something that will explain it all. It's like…like something is just watching us, placing us just so… like pieces in some game. I don't like it. Not at all. But maybe I do owe her an apology. There's something about her…something I can't really describe, but I know it's not evil. She's not like the Sith. I can already see that. She's already promised to help that one woman, and the doctor. Surely someone with that kind of compassion couldn't be with the Sith. But still… _He glanced at Aria's back as she walked on ahead. The set of her shoulders betrayed the fact that she was still angry, still on edge after his accusations. She didn't even so much as glance at him as he caught up to her.  
  
He ran a hand tiredly through his hair, _This is gonna be a long day…_  
  
Fin Chapitre Deux


	3. Reconciliation

Chapter Three

Reconciliation

Aria made a sharp turn as she spotted an information terminal situated at the edge of the walkway. She pushed her way through the sparse foot traffic to reach the terminal and immediately plugged in her small datapad.

"What are you doing?" Carth's voice called from just behind her.

She set her lips in a thin line, debating whether or not she should waste the time it would take to answer him. At last she decided that even if he didn't trust her, she still needed his help and she might as well let him in on her plans, "Downloading a map of this place."

"Looking for something in particular?"

_He's acting like nothing happened! Typical. He accuses me of being a spy and a saboteur, and he expects me to pretend he never said it. Ha. Not a chance in hell._

"A cantina." she replied, her voice terse.

She heard him sigh heavily in annoyance. _Good. Get used to it, flyboy. It's going to be this way for a long time._

"Why do we need a cantina?"

She unplugged her datapad as the download completed and turned to him, "Weren't you listening? We need some way to get down into the Undercity. The swoop gangs there will probably know more than anyone about Bastila's location. But our good friends, the Sith, aren't going to let just anyone down there. We need a disguise."

He crossed his arms, "And the cantina is going to provide us with one?"

"No. But I'm hoping someone there will know where I can get one." With that she brushed past him, glanced at her datapad, and headed in the direction of the cantina. As she neared the branch in the walkway she began to pick up on voices raised in a heated argument. She paused, then edged closer, listening in on their conversation. Well hidden from public view under the archway, a human and an amphibious looking alien known as an Aqualish had cornered an elderly man.

"Davik says you missed your payment, so we're here to collect it." one of the men stated, his blaster in hand. It was clearly meant to cow the elderly man.

"But I don't have that much! How can I give you credits I don't have?" the elderly man cried, his face pale in fear. His eyes never left the blaster as the man waved it threateningly.

"That's not my problem." the second man, an alien known as an Aqualish, chimed in, "Now pay up, or we'll be forced to get more…drastic."

Aria's eyes widened in anger, and she started to step forward, but caught herself at the last moment. _I can't just let them kill him. But…if we draw too much attention to ourselves, the Sith will find us. _

She turned as she heard Carth's footsteps catch up to her, her face troubled, "Carth…"

He merely nodded, "I heard them."

"So what do we do? We can't just let them kill him." She whispered, her voice near pleading.

He reached for his blasters, "We stop them, of course."

Aria took his cue, slipping her datapad into a pouch at her waist as she drew her vibroblades. Lifting her head she stepped plainly into the field of view of the three men and called out, "What's going on, boys?"

As one the two lackeys turned to her, leering, "Oh. A witness? Davik hates witnesses. Sorry, sweetheart, but we're going to have to take you out."

Aria merely shrugged and motioned them toward her with the point of one vibroblade, "Be my guest." She settled into her fighting stance, one blade held high, the other kept low for defense or a quick thrusting offense, "Come now, boys, don't be shy. There's plenty of me to go around."

The goons' faces twisted with anger and they immediately opened fire with their blasters, the elderly man forgotten for the moment. Aria reacted with instincts honed over years of traveling the galaxy, diving under the shots in a roll, just as she had done to the Sith earlier that morning. Coming out of the roll, she sprang lightly to her feet and rushed the human goon, spinning around as she came within range to catch him with both blades in quick succession.

_Duck! _The impulse was so strong that it felt like someone had physically yelled the command at her, and she reacted instantly, crouching low with her blades crossed over her head. A blaster bolt sizzled just overhead, a bolt that would have killed her instantly had she not moved. Only a second later the Aqualish crashed to the ground, his wide amphibian eyes lifeless.

"Are you alright?" Carth's voice drew her gaze upward. He stood over her, a hand held out to help her to her feet.

She nodded as she clipped her weapons to her belt and reached up to take his hand. He easily pulled her to her feet, glancing her over to ensure that she wasn't wounded.

"Thanks." she muttered grudgingly.

_I thought I was a spy, Onasi. What's with the concern all of the sudden?_ Her inner voice railed, and she had to bite down on her tongue to keep the words from spilling out. She turned to the elderly man, who was standing as if in shock against the wall, his eyes wide.

"Th-thank you both!" he suddenly cried, finally shaking himself back into awareness, "My wife told me not to borrow money from Davik, but I didn't listen, and now I don't have the hundred credits to pay him back."

"A hundred credits?" Aria's brow drew together in thought. Smiling warmly at the elderly man, she reached into her pocket and withdrew a hundred credits, "Here. A hundred credits."

Carth gave her an incredulous look, "You're going to give him that much money?"

She glanced at him, "I'm sure Davik has more goons where those came from, and unless he pays the man back, they won't stop coming."

The elderly man reached out hesitantly, "Are you sure, young lady?"

Aria nodded, "Positive. Take them."

"I…I don't know what to say. You've saved my life. Thank you…thank you!" The man bowed to her as he took the money, "I'll go repay Davik right away!" He disappeared into the crowd, leaving Aria staring after him, a faint smile on her lips.

"That was really generous of you." Carth said after a moment.

She turned to him, her gaze hardening, "Even 'spies' are capable of compassion."

"You didn't have to take it so personally." He replied, his face betraying just how tired he was of arguing.

Aria's eyes flared in anger, "Don't tell me not to take it personally! You accuse me of being in league with those Sith bastards and you tell me not to take it _personally_!?"

He held out his hands in a placating gesture, "Aria-"

"No!" she cried, her face now livid with anger, "You listen to me, Carth. We have to work together to get off this damned planet, so I suggest you start working with me instead of against me. We're on the same team here!"

He sighed, "I know, I know. Just calm down for a second. I have my reasons for not trusting easily." He stopped suddenly, as if he had intended to say more but had cut himself off at the last moment.

Aria wasn't about to let it lie there, "What reasons are those, exactly?" She asked, her voice dripping with mock-sweetness.

He ran a hand through his hair in agitation, "Blast if you aren't the most frustrating woman to talk to!"

Aria snorted, "_I'm_ frustrating? Look who's talking!"

His face transformed into one of confusion, "Who? Me? What did I do?"

"Oh, that's _rich_." she retorted, drawing closer to him, "Where have you been?"

Carth's shoulders slumped in defeat, "I-fine, I give up. You want to know why I don't trust? Of all the people who left the Republic to join Revan and Malak, one of them stands out most, Saul Karath."

"Saul? That name sounds familiar." Aria leaned against the railing of the walkway, intent on Carth's speech.

He nodded, "It should. He's admiral of the entire Sith fleet, and half the reason Malak's been doing so well. Back when the Mandalorian War ended he came to me and started talking about how I should be thinking of my survival and that the Republic was on the losing side. We argued for a while, and he left. I didn't see him again. I couldn't have conceived of it then, but now I know he had been trying to recruit me into the Sith. Of course, I realized all of that later, when I woke up with the alarms blaring. Not only had Saul betrayed us, but he'd given the Sith the codes to bypass the scanners around Telos. There wasn't a damn thing anyone could do…the entire planet was razed."

"Carth…"

He laughed bitterly, "And the worst thing about it was the fact that I looked up to him as a mentor. He taught me everything I know about being a soldier. I could have stopped him that day he came to me, but I just couldn't believe he of all people would betray the Republic. I could have stopped it… I could have stopped it all."

Aria pushed herself off the railing and stood in front of him, gently laying a hand on his shoulder, "Carth, you can't blame yourself for trusting a friend. None of us would ever believe our friends had betrayed us until we saw it with our own eyes. It's just human nature."

He simply stared down at her, the pain in his eyes so deep that it felt as if she were being swallowed by it as well, "I know. But if I ever catch up to him, he will regret what he's done. He will regret it."

She took a step back, tilting her head, "You're seeking revenge?"

"The Jedi that joined Revan and Malak fell to the Dark Side, but the men from the Republic had no excuse, and they deserve no mercy." his voice had become deadly calm, his eyes hardened with anger and bloodlust.

"I haven't joined the Sith, Carth." She was beginning to fear the side of Carth she had just unleashed more than the Sith that surrounded them at every turn. He had the look of a man with absolutely nothing to lose, and that was by far the most dangerous kind.

"I know…" he replied, his voice still soft, "If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have gotten this far."

"So…truce?" she asked, offering him her hand.

He grinned as he reached out to take her hand, "Truce. Now what do you say we finish looking for a way off this rock?"

Aria quirked an eyebrow at him, "I say let's go."

"Ah…wait…I meant to ask you something about the battle."

She turned back, "What about it?"

"When you dodged that blaster shot…I've never seen anyone move so fast, and you had your back to him. How did you know he was going to shoot?"

She shrugged, "I…just kind of felt it, I guess. I've always been lucky like that. Wouldn't get very far being a scout if I had lousy luck, now would I? I'd have fallen into some black hole years ago."

He laughed, "If you had it would have saved me a lot of trouble."

Aria shook her head, laughing silently as she reached for her datapad again and turned it on, "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, flyboy." She glanced at her surroundings, then down at her datapad, "I think we need to go this way." she gestured through the archway they were standing under, "The cantina is just beyond the supplies store."

She put the datapad away and took the lead again, stepping over the cooling bodies of Davik's goons as she made her way toward the cantina. Clearly Davik was well known as a bully on Taris, and she was hoping that whoever found the bodies would be thankful that the man had two less goons with which to threaten the citizenry. Of course, things could just as easily go the other direction and they could end up wanted, but she didn't have time to worry about that possibility at the moment.

As they entered the cantina, Aria paused for a moment at the door to allow her eyes to adjust to the lack of light. As her world slowly came back into focus she made her way through the first room and into the large circular room at the center. She glanced at the gathered patrons, searching for one that looked the most likely to prove useful to her. All of them seemed to be average Tarisian nobles, however, and a few of the more drunken men kept glancing in her direction and then at Carth before returning to their drinks.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Carth whispered, leaning in close so as to keep others from overhearing.

"A mercenary, maybe…someone with information on the black market." She replied, her blue-gray eyes still scanning the patrons.

"There is a Hutt here, you know. I overheard someone talking about him just a minute ago. I think he's through there." Carth gestured off to her left.

"A Hutt? Well then, looks like we found our information." She pushed her way through the crowd to the Hutt's auditorium and made her way up to his dais. The slug-like creature immediately fixed its slitted gaze on her in suspicion.

"Is there something you want, little one?" the Hutt asked in its native language.

Aria nodded, "Yes. I need information on where to obtain a Sith uniform."

Carth looked over at her in surprise, about to ask how she'd understood the creature when he remembered her service records and the pages-long list of alien languages that she could either speak or understand. It was quite an unusual talent, but then again, he was beginning to realize that a lot of things about Aria were unusual.

"A Sith uniform? Well, I may know, or I may not." the creature answered elusively.

Aria produced two hundred credits and held them out, "Perhaps a donation could spur your memory?"

The Hutt laughed, a deep, guttural sound, "Ah, little one, usually I would charge much more for such information, but I like you." He motioned a Rodian forward with a stubby arm, and Aria handed the credits over him, "Yes, I do know about Sith uniforms. My sources say there is an Aqualish who has stolen quite a few of these uniforms for the Hidden Beks, a swoop gang in the Lower City. He currently lives in the apartments on the south side of town. Does that help you, little one?"

Aria bowed deeply, "Yes. Thank you very much."

The Hutt laughed again as Aria turned to leave, "Good luck on your search, little one."

"I take it you have your information now?" Carth asked as they made their way back to the entrance of the cantina.

Aria smiled sweetly, "But of course." She dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, "The Hutt says that there is an Aqualish who steals the uniforms for one of the swoop gangs. He lives in the apartments on the south side, so that's our next stop."

"For the Upper City, this place sure does seem run-down." Aria commented as the door to the south side apartments slid open, "You'd think all these nobles would be able to spare the cash to at least keep the place cleaned up." She stepped out into the circular hall, glancing around as she decided between going left or right.

"I'm sure they don't really give a damn. As long as they sit in luxury, they couldn't care less about what happens to the rest of the planet." Carth fell into step at her side, running his gaze over the walls of the building.

"Makes you sick, doesn't it? That people could be that self-centered…"

"Yeah." Carth stopped suddenly, grabbing Aria's arm, "Wait. There's Sith up ahead. I see the guard standing outside that apartment."

Aria felt icy dread work it's way into her stomach as she contemplated the possibilities, "They're looking for us, aren't they?"

Carth was silent for a long moment as he studied the situation, "No." he said at last, "They're here for something else. That's just a guard, something else must be going on inside."

"The uniforms…"

He nodded, "That'd be my guess."

Aria's eyes narrowed in resolve, "We can't let them take him prisoner. Come on." She continued down the hall, her hands resting on the hilts of her vibroblades. As she has suspected, the Sith called out to her as she drew closer.

"Halt, civilian. This is Sith business, you'd better just turn around and go back the way you came."

Aria merely fixed him with her intense gaze, "What exactly is going on in there?"

The guard shifted his stance, lifting his blaster slightly, "It's got nothing to do with you, woman."

Aria shrugged, "I don't know, somehow you tormenting the innocent seems to be my business. So I'll ask you boys nicely to leave him alone."

The guard laughed, the sound coming out harsh and metallic through his voice synthesizer, "Hey, boss, there's some bitch at out here who thinks she can stand up to us."

Two more Sith appeared at the door, both of them staring directly at Aria.

"Didn't your mother teach you not to speak to women that way?" Carth asked, taking his stand at Aria's side.

The guard laughed, "And what are you supposed to be? The gallant soldier?"

"Enough! Just kill them already! We have real business to attend to." the commander shouted, pulling his blaster rifle from his back.

In a fluid motion Carth drew his blaster and fired, catching the guard full in the chest. He hadn't even hit the ground before Carth turned and fired on the second. Aria drew her blades and rushed at the third just as he raised his blaster rifle to fire at Carth. She slammed full on into the guard, knocking him to the side just enough to deflect the bolt safely to one side. Before the Sith could regain his footing she thrust one blade at him, driving it into the unprotected area under the Sith's arm and into his chest. With a look of disgust she pulled her blade free and wiped it clean on a discarded piece of paper that lay in the hall.

"These Sith have absolutely zero class." she quipped as she moved past Carth into the apartment itself, "I could have thought up a better insult than that at the age of ten."

"…Where have the Sith gone?" an alien voice called from one corner of the room. Aria turned toward the source of the voice, the Aqualish she had been searching for. He was clearly afraid for his life, and Aria smiled at him to diffuse his fear.

"Dead." she replied.

The alien relaxed visibly, "Thank you, human. They surely would have killed me had you not been here. Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

Aria nodded, "We heard you had Sith uniforms. Do you have one we could buy? We need to get to the Lower City."

"I'm sorry, human. I gave all of the uniforms I stole to the Beks. They're planning a resistance against the Sith and I have been helping them little by little. But if you're going to the Lower City, I would suggest you seek them out. I know now you are no friend of the Sith, and I'm sure Gadon could help you in whatever you need. I'm sorry to leave so suddenly, but I fear if I stay here too long, the Sith will find me again. Thank you again, human."

The Aqualish ran for the door and was quickly gone.

"So now what?" Carth asked, "We're at a dead end again. At this rate, the Sith are going to find Bastila before we do."

Aria's nose wrinkled in distaste at the idea forming in her mind, but she could see no way around it. "I guess we steal the uniforms from our friends here. I don't find the prospect very attractive, myself, but we don't have a lot of choice. We can put the uniforms into that box there so we can get them back to our apartment without anyone noticing." She glanced at her chronometer, "It's getting late, anyway. I think we should just take the uniforms and head back until tomorrow."

Carth sighed, a wry smile playing across his lips, "Sounds like fun. Let's get to it, then."


End file.
